Directory holder device



April 1965 w. J. GILMORE DIRECTQRY HOLDER DEVICE 2 Sheets-Shem 1 Filed May 4, 1964 INVENTOR.

William J.Gilm0re ATTORNEYS April 6, 1965 w. J. GILMORE DIRECTORY HOLDER DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 4, 1964 INVENTOR.

William J. Gilmore ATTORNEYS 3,l?b,952 ?atented Apr. 6, 1%65 3,176,?52 DIRECTORY HOLDER DEVICE William J. Gilmore, Manitou Beach, Mich, assignor to American Chain 55; Cable (30., Inc. filed May 4, 196a, Ser. No. 364,604 6 Claims. (iii. 248-317) This invention is for adevice for holding directories and the like and is more particularly directed to a locking holder device which is secured in lockin engagement with the back of a directory. The device is especially used to secure telephone directories to a public telephone booth in such a manner that the directory may be conveniently used but may not be easily removed from the holder or from the booth. The device is of simple design and construction which permit convenient assembly upon the hack of the directory and may be disassembled only by means of a special tool.

This invention has particular application to telephone directories and the following discussion and description will, accordingly, be so confined. However, it is understood that the device has application to other kinds of directories and books.

A persistent problem of pilferage is presented where telephone directories are installed in or near public telephone booths. While it is necessary to have directories placed in such locations for the convenience of the user, it has been found difiicult to secure such directories in a manner which will be conducive to their use yet will discourage their being stolen.

The device of this invention is easily assembled, compact and sturdy in construction, and in its assembled position upon a directory has no visible locking means. The device is secured to the back of the telephone directory by the cooperating engagement of two telescoping plate members and a plurality of longitudinal bars. The telescoping plates interlock automatically upon the completion of the assembly upon the directory. The holder device is provided with a flexible cable lanyard which is secured to the telephone booth or other immovable object by means of a bolted bracket. i

Broadly, the invention is for a directory holder device to be secured to the back of a directory. The holder device comprises a base plate and a sliding plate slideable in telescoping engagement with the base plate. Thebase plate further has at least one depressible element. The sliding plate is provided with at least one opening adapted to receive the depressible element on the base plate; A plurality of longitudinal bars are in bridging engagement with the remote ends of the base plate and the sliding plate.

A clear understanding of the invention will be had by reference to the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the directory holder device;

FIG. 2 is a non-continuous section of the device taken through line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective of the assembled directory holder device in relation to a protective cover shown in phantom;

FIG. 4 is a perspective of the tool used to unlock the assembled directory holder device;

FIG. 5 i a section taken along the line 55 of FIG. 1;

PEG. 6 is a detailed section of the base plate and sliding plate showing the tool of FIG. 4 in unlocking position thereto.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a base plate it is there shown. The base plate 10 is preferably made of a rigid material, such as steel, and has a length substantially equal to the length of the back of a directory with respect to which it is used. While the directory is not shown in the drawings it is understood that the back refers to that portion of the directory to which the pages are secured.

The base plate It) is formed with a pair of side channels 12 running longitudinally along each side of the base plate. The side channels 12 are preferably formed by bending a portion of the sides of the base plate 10 inwardly. The side channels 12 are adapted to receive a sliding plate 16, similarly made of steel or other rigid material, in telescoping engagement with the base plate 16. Base plate it) and sliding plate 16 are each provided with upright flange portions 18 and 20 respectively which flange portions form the ends of the assembled holder device.

The base plate 19 and the sliding plate 16 are uniquely formed so that they automatically interlock upon being assembled in telescoping engagement with each other. The base plate 19 has a pair of tongues 22 formed by cutting out a portion of the base plate (phantom line FIG. 1). The tongues 22 are integral with and rooted at their one end to the base plate 10. The tongues 22 have free end-s 24 which are raised with respect to the tongues themselves preferably 'by being bent upward at a diagonal with the plane of the base plate 10. The ends 24 are bent at an angle such that the slant is away from the end of base plate 10 at which the sliding plate 16 i introduced. While formed as a part of the metal of the base plate 10, the tongues 22 are sul'hciently resilient so that they may be deformed downwardly upon the application of pressure at the ends 24 and will return to their normal positions upon the release of pressure. The sliding plate 16 is in turn provided with a pair of openings 26 adapted to receive the ends 24 of the tongues 22. The openings 26 are located such that the free ends 24 are received therein only when the base plate It) and sliding plate 16 are in assembled alignment with each other (FIG. 2).

From the foregoing description of the two plates it can be seen that as the sliding plate 16 is slid (from left to right in FIG. 2) into telescoping engagement with base plate 10, the tongue ends 24 will be depressed by the pressure contact of the sliding plate. The continued movement of the sliding plate 16 will hold the tongue ends 24 down until the openings 26 are in registry with the tongue ends. At this point the tongue ends 24 will snap up and through the openings 26. Thus, the plates 10 and 16 are automatically interlocked. The plate 16 cannot be move to the right because of the limiting action of upright flange 20; nor can it be withdrawn to the left because of the intervention oftongue ends 24.

The only Way that the plates 10 and 16 may be separated is by first depressing tongue ends 24 thereby disengaging the tongue ends from the sliding plate 16. This is done by means of a special tool 28 having a flat blade 30 and a grip 31 (FIGS. 4 and 6). The blade 30 is of a rigid material such as steel and is of a thickness to permit its being inserted between sliding plate 16 and base plate 1%. The blade 3i! has a Width substantially the same as the sliding plate 16 so that when the blade is inserted between the base plate 10 and the sliding plate 16 contact with the tongue ends 24 is assured. As best shown in FIG. 6 the blade 34 is easily inserted in the space between sliding plate 16 and base plate 10 and as the blade 3% slides between the plates it contacts the end portions 24 of the tongues 22 thereby depressing the tongues out of locking engagement with the sliding plate 16. The tongue ends 24 having been depressed the sliding plate 16 may be easily removed.

Engagement of the holder with the back of a directory is completed by a plurality of longitudinal bars 32 which extend the length of the holder and engage the upright flanges 18 and 2%. The flanges 18 and 20 are provided with a plurality of slots 34 adapted to receive narrowed ends 36 and 38 respectively of the longitudinal bars 32.

The ends 38 are further provided with holes 40 through which rod 42 may be passed. The purpose of rod 42 is to prevent the longitudinal bars 32 from slipping out of slots 34 in upright flange 18 when the holder is unassembled. In the assembled position, the longitudinal bars 32 are interspaced between groups of pages in the telephone directory. Thus the telescoped plates and 16 provide a spine on the back of the directory and the longitudinal bars 32 act as retaining members in bridging engagement between the flanges 18 and 20 to prevent separation of the holder from the back. i

The flange 20 is provided with a lanyard 44, preferably made of a nylon covered flexible cable, which has at its one end an annular retaining member 46 and at its other end a ball member 48 having a shank 50. The annularretaining member 46 has a radial dimension greater than that of an opening 52 in the upright flange 20, thus preventing the lanyard 44 from being pulled away from the flange. The ball member 48 engages a cup-shaped mounting bracket 54 having a slot 56 and an interior concavity 58. The slot 56 has a dimension ofsuch size to permit the movement of the shank 51B and lanyard 44 therein but prevents the passage of the ball 48 therethrough. Thus the ball member 48 is held in movable engagement with the bracket 54. 1

The bracket 54 is fastened to an immovable object, such as a telephone booth, by bolts 60 run through a rim 62 of the bracket.

The locking holder device is assembled by placing the base plate 10 upon the back of a telephone directory and positioning the longitudinal bars 32, held upon flange 18 by bar 42, between groups of pages of the directory. The sliding plate 16 is then slid in channels 12 into telescoping engagement with the base plate '10. Before the telescoping travel of the'sliding plate 16 is complete the bar ends 36 are aligned with the slots 34 in the flange 20. After sliding plate 16 completes its travel and becomes engaged withtongue ends 24 the base plate 10, the sliding plate 16 and the longitudinal bars 32 are all in secure engagement with each other and with the telephone directory. 7

The directory, thus assembled, is attached, via the lanyard 48, to a telephone booth or other immovable object by bolting the bracket 54 to the booth. Secured in this manner unauthorized removal'of the directory is diificult.

Whenever it is necessary to make replacements, the device may be disassembled by means of the tool 28, in the manner previously described, the old'directory removed and anew one put in place.

I claim: V

1. A locking holder device adapted to be secured to the back'of a directory, said holder device comprising (a) a base plate,

', (b) at least one depressible element on said base plate,

(0) a sliding plate slideable in telescoping engagement with said base plate, said sliding plate having at least one opening therein adapted to receive said depressible element on said base plate, and

(d) a plurality of longitudinal bars in bridging engage- 2. A locking holder device adapted to be secured to the back of a directory, said holder device comprising (a) a base plate having longitudinal side channels thereon,

(b) a plurality of depressible tongue portions on said base plate, each of said tongue portions having a bent end portion,

(c) a sliding plate slideable in said side channels for telescoping engagement with said base plate, said sliding plate. having a plurality of openings therein each adapted to receive the respective bent end portions of said tongue therein,

(a!) an upright flange portion at one end of both said base plate and said sliding plate, each of said flange portions forming an end of the assembled holder device, and

(e) a plurality of longitudinal bars in bridging engagement with said upright flanges.

3. A locking holder device in accordance with claim 2 having in addition a flexible cable lanyard engaging one of said upright flanges at its one end and a mounting bracket adapted to engage said lanyard at its other end.

4. A locking holder device in accordance with claim 3 wherein said longitudinal bars have narrowed ends adapted to fit in slots in said upright flange portions.

5. A locking holder device adapted to be secured to the back of a directory, said holder device comprising (a) a base plate having longitudinal side channels thereon,

(b) a plurality of depressible tongue portions on said base plate, each of said tongue portions having an upwardly bent end portion,

(0) a sliding plate slideable in said side channels for telescoping engagement with said base plate, said sliding plate having a plurality of openings therein each adapted to receive the respective bent end portions therein,

(d) an upright flange portion at one end of both said base plate and said sliding plate, each of said flange portions having a plurality of slots therein and forming an end of the assembled holder device,

(e) a plurality of longitudinal bars having narrowed ends adapted to fit in said slots in bridging engagement between said upright flanges,

i (f) a flexible cable lanyard engaging one of said upright flanges at its one end, and

(g) a mounting bracket adapted to engage said lanyard at its other end.

6. A locking holder device in accordance with claim 5 wherein said lanyard has a ball member at its one endand a slotted bracket adapted to hold said ball member in moveable engagementtherewith.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 807,100 12/05 Wood 287-21 1,737,178 11/29 Schenken 129 3s 1,918,592 7/33 David "129-38 CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTEFECATE OF CORRECTION atent No 3 ,l76 952 I April 6, r 1965 William J. Gilmore It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patnt. requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as arrested below.

Column 2, line 47, for "move" read moved column 4, .ine 12, for "tongue" read tongues Signed and sealed this 21st day of September 1965.

NEST W. SWIDER EDWARD J. BRENNER asting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

1. A LOCKING HOLDER DEVICE ADAPTED TO BE SECURED TO THE BACK OF A DIRECTORY, SAID HOLDER DEVICE COMPRISING (A) A BASE PLATE, (B) AT LEAST ONE DEPRESSIBLE ELEMENT ON SAID BASE PLATE, (C) A SLIDING PLATE SLIDABLE IN TELESCOPING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID BASE PLATE, SAID SLIDING PLATE HAVING AT LEAST ONE OPENING THEREIN ADAPTED TO RECEIVE SAID DEPRESSIBLE ELEMENT ON SAID BASE PLATE, AND (D) A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINAL BARS IN BRIDGING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE REMOTE ENDS OF SAID BASE PLATE AND SAID SLIDING PLATE. 